Allyson Whipple

Tag: giveaway

  • A Birthday Poetry Giveaway

    Photo by Anna Shvets on Pexels.com

    I admit, this time last year, I figured we’d have this pandemic issue all sorted out, and I’d be able to have a big dinner party with all of my friends. Turns out that prediction was incorrect! This year is still better than last year, because I do get to have a small gathering with my quarantine pod, and everyone in it is fully vaccinated. Still, I miss being able to have big gatherings. I have a good feeling 2022 will be the year.

    Even with the pandemic, though, I feel celebratory. Especially because my birthday falls during National Poetry Month! So I thought I’d offer some presents to you, dear readers. So I’m hosting a drawing for four books!

    1. A copy of my first chapbook, We’re Smaller Than We Think We Are
    2. A copy of my second chapbook, Come Into the World Like That
    3. A copy of Cooking With the Texas Poets Laureate, edited by Elizabeth Ethredge
    4. A copy of Eat This Poem by Nicole Gulotta

    To Enter

    1. Comment on this post telling me which book(s) interest you the most
    2. You will get a bonus entry if you link to a poem you love
    3. Deadline to comment is Sunday, April 18th at 11:59 pm
    4. I will draw winners at random and notify recipients within four days of the deadline

  • Big Poetry Giveaway 2016 Participants

    Here’s the running list of people participating in Big Poetry Giveaway 2016! It will be updated as more bloggers contribute.

    1. Andrea Blythe
    2. Drew Myron

  • Big Poetry Giveaway Winners!

    With the help of a trusty random number generator, I have determined the winners of the Big Poetry Giveaway!

    Jessica Goodfellow won America Zen: A Gathering of Poets

    Laurie Kolp won We’re Smaller Than We Think We Are

    Congrats, poets!

    I also won two books in the giveaway, and I’m thrilled. I always love getting new poetry in the mail.

  • Big Poetry Giveaway 2015!

    The sixth Big Poetry Giveaway is up and running! The fabulous Kelli Russell Agodon is hosting again. And I’m looking forward to another great year of meeting new poets and sharing poetry.

    This year, I’m giving away two books. First up is my chapbook, We’re Smaller Than We Think We Are (Finishing Line Press, 2013).

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    I wrote the poems that became this chapbook after I had lived in Texas for about two years. It’s about finding place, falling in love with geography, taking journeys.

    The second book I’m offering is an anthology called America Zen: A Gathering of Poets. You don’t have to be a Buddhist to love this anthology. The poets in it are Buddhists, but their meditative, spiritual, joyful work transcends a single spiritual label.

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    So how do you win? Just leave a comment with a name and email address anytime between now and 11:59 p.m. on April 30th. I’ll randomly select a winner in May!

    For details on how to join BPG, see Kelli’s post here.

    Since Big Poetry Giveaway always draws new readers here, I like to take a cue from Kelli and do a little introduction of sorts. Kelli gave herself some great interview questions this year, so I’ll be using those.

    Welcome! My name is Allyson Whipple. I run the Austin Feminist Poetry Festival and am co-editor of the 2015 Texas Poetry Calendar. I have a black belt in Hung Gar Kung Fu and am training to become an instructor. I also teach business and technical writing at Austin Community College.

    Last year I: Saw my favorite band twice in two days, earned my black belt, got divorced, got some of Kay Ryan’s poetry tattooed on my arm, and applied to an MFA program (I am still waiting their decision).

    I believe in universal healthcare.

    I like sunshine, red wine, tacos, steak, the ocean, silver tequila, and jeans.

    I am always looking for ketchup potato chips, which are nearly impossible to find in Texas.

    People think I am not interested in hip-hop or country music, when in fact I like both.

    I recently: perfected my homemade bagel recipe.

    If I could live anywhere: I would stay where I am, except in a house that didn’t have foundation problems or a roommate.

    I do not buy bread from the grocery store. I’ve gotten too spoiled from my own baking.

    I am thankful for the amazing poetry opportunities that have come my way in the past few months.

    I cheer for Cleveland and Ohio State (on the rare occasion I pay attention, which is almost never).

    To me, success is actually pretty much 100% what Kelli said: “being able to control my own time and schedule.”

    My writing process is all up in the air right now, as I’ve turned my attention to getting my first full-length collection prepared for publication. (Hopefully this year, but we’ll see.)

    I am most like: an agave.

  • Big Poetry Giveaway 2012!

    It’s time for National Poetry Month, and to celebrate, I’m participating in the 3rd Annual Big Poetry Giveaway!

    For any new visitors the giveaway has brought to this blog, welcome! Allow me to introduce myself (readers who know me might want to skip down a few lines): I’m an Ohio native now making my home in Austin, Texas. I adore my adopted state (well, not the politics of it…), and constantly drawn on the landscape as fodder for my poetry. Although I have been writing since I was twelve, I only became truly serious about poetry in 2009. Since then, my poems have appeared in a variety of places (click here for the full list), and I now have a chapbook manuscript out for submission. In addition to poetry and a day job, I love to dance, and compete in west coast swing. Finally, I have an obsession with avocados.

    I’ve been reading Kelli Russell Agodon’s blog for years, which is how I came to learn about the Big Poetry Giveaway. The other writers who inspire me are Drew Myron (a recent addition to my blogroll, but nonetheless important to me),  Christine Hennessey (she’s been on my blog radar the longest — since 2006, I think), Shanna Germain, Chuck Wendig, and Bon Steele.

    Although I don’t have a book of my own to give away this year (here’s hoping for 2013!), I’m offering up two excellent collections.

    First up is Susan Wheeler‘s Ledger. Structured around the concept of finance, Wheeler’s text is no dull accounting textbook. It draws on history and art in its discussions of money and consumerism, spanning hilarity and sorrow. And it’s also the kind of collection that doesn’t feel constrained by theme. It’s not rigidly tied to it; none of the poems here feels forced.It has a concept, but is free to move around as necessary.

    I’m also giving away Allison Benis White‘s Self-Portrait with Crayon. This book uses Degas paintings as a frame for the theme of loss that runs through these pieces. It’s a collection of prose poems rather than verse, and I have a particular fondness for this form, which is another reason I chose it.

    The drawing is open to anyone, anywhere, and will run through the entire month of April. If you’d like to enter, please leave a comment here with your name and email address before 11:59 p.m. on April 30th. I’ll randomly select two winners on May 1st. Good luck!